PPU partners with Taxpayers Against Poverty on new campaign for adequate minimum income and truly af
London 3 September 2018: The Progressive Policy Unit has teamed up with the campaigning organisation, Taxpayers Against Poverty, to drive for adequate minimum income and truly affordable housing. The campaign seeks to inform voters and policy makers on the benefits and practicalities of policy change.
A key event will be a seminar at the Houses of Parliament on 1 November 2018 entitled: Moral case for adequate minimum income and truly affordable housing. This seminar comes at a time when low incomes, high rents and increasing mortgages in the UK are creating debt, hunger, homelessness, mental and physical ill health.
The aim is to reduce the financial burden for those on welfare benefits and low wages who already do not have enough income for basic needs. The proposals involve the abolition of income and property taxes on low incomes, this includes replacing council tax with a tax on land values, which is paid by landlord not the tenant.
Tom Burgess, Executive Director, Progressive Policy Unit said:
"Taxpayers Against Poverty have been relentless in campaigning for justice for those suffering financial hardship and have done much good work to alleviate this distress. While governments offer piecemeal interventions and paper of the cracks, a lasting change will not be achieved until there is fundamental reform to our economic system, that is what we are seeking with this campaign."
Rev Paul Nicolson, founder of Taxpayers Against Poverty said:
"We have recently had some success in the London Borough of Haringey. TAP put the case at one of the Haringey Unite Community meetings that any local authority that is taxing a broken national benefit system is damaging the health and wellbeing of its poorest residents and their children. Haringey Labour Party members then raised this as a matter for discussion at their manifesto meeting, at which scrapping council tax for the poorest was adopted as manifesto policy for the May 2018 elections. Haringey Council’s new cabinet is honouring that commitment."
Seminar details
Title: The moral case for an adequate minimum income and truly affordable housing
Venue: Attlee Suite, Portcullis House, Houses of Parliament, London SW1A 1AA,
Chair: Debbie Abrahams MP
Date: Thursday 1st November from 18.00 -21.00 with break
Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-moral-case-for-adequate-minimum-incomes-and-truly-affordable-housing-tickets-48730509265?aff=efbeventtix
About Taxpayers against Poverty
Taxpayers Against Poverty seeks to influence national policy from well-informed thinking about taxation and the common good, with and for our poorest fellow citizens. TAP seeks to support the poorest citizens that are thrust into unmanageable debt by caps and cuts in housing benefit, possible eviction, forced migration, undue stress and misery. TAP was founded in 2012 by Rev Paul Nicolson, who in 1997 initiated the detailed research into minimum income standards on which the real Living Wage is based. www.taxpayersagainstpoverty.org.uk
About Progressive Policy Unit
The PPU is a political advocacy group founded by Tom Burgess, author of: From Here To ProsperityHYPERLINK "https://www.amazon.co.uk/Here-Prosperity-Thomas-J-Burgess-ebook/dp/B01HBRRE7G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1507052418&sr=8-3&keywords=thomas+burgess", a practical policy agenda for a sustainable economy and greater social justice which was published by Shepheard-Walwyn in 2016 as part of their Ethical Economic Series. The PPU partners with organisations involved in minimising inequality and promoting an inclusive political agenda. www.ppunit.com
Media Contact
Tom Burgess, Progressive Policy Unit: 0788 772 4285 tom@ppunit.com
